Christina Rossetti

Christina Georgina Rossetti is buried in Highgate Cemetery, North London,
England. She
was buried in the same grave as her mother and father. (The grave is situated towards the front of the cemetery.)

Rossetti Family GravePhotograph by
Scott
Michaels

Christina was the daughter of Gabriele Rossetti and grew up in an
artistic and politically aware household. She was educated at home.

One of her brothers was
Dante Gabriel Rossetti - a painter
and a poet - while the other was William Michael Rossetti - a leading
art critic and editor. It was William who edited her complete works in 1904 (10 years after her
death).

At one stage she was engaged
to painter James Collinson - a member of the
Pre-Raphaelite
brotherhood - but the engagement was broken off in 1850.

Christina suffered with poor health for much of her life and as a result she rarely
went out or received visitors. She lived, for much of the time, with her
mother. Her poetry, which is often compared to that of Emily Brontė, is
characterised by an overwhelming sense of melancholy. Some modern
readers also find it overly morbid and maudlin.

Her most famous collections include: Goblin Market and Other Poems
(1862) , The Prince's Progress and Other Poems (1866) and
Sing-Song, a Nursery Rhyme Book (1872).

Rossetti contracted cancer in 1891, but an operation prolonged her life
until December 1894.